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Sometimes school tracking sets students up for failure, academically and socially. My students with disabilities, who require extra academic assistance, often ended up on the short end of the stick. Because they were in all of the same classes together I noticed that they also clung to each other in the cafeteria. They had a difficult time fitting in and making friends with other students.

Inspired by an article about cyberbullying, I asked my fifth-graders to write podcast scripts. They wrote about teasing, cyberbullying, gossip, intention vs. consequence, advertising, digital footprints and the lack of facial cues in electronic communication. Working mostly in collaborative groups, my students recorded complete “'casts” on our informal laptop studio.

Our latest magazine issue, a brand-new guide for serving English language learners and posts about school choice have inspired a lot of dialogue with our readers.

Educators who can work around obstacles and recognize the promise of new technologies are making a difference.

Nefertari Yancie, Ph.D., credits her family’s commitment to asking courageous questions, seeking answers and taking action as the impetus for her career in the classroom.